A Lavender Rose
by SiriuslylvnSirius25
Summary: Love at first sight. Enchantment. Wonder and impossibility. Regal majesty. Magical. Adoration. All the meanings of a single lavender rose.


Petals of lavender roses were strewn across the room in a seemingly random pattern. However, if one looked closely enough, one would see that it wasn't random at all but rather a pathway. Starting from the bottom of the staircase to a single bed in the seventh year Gryffindor girl's dormitory, the petals were laid down as a pathway. They continued onto the comforter of the bed itself, splattered across the white surface with seeming brilliance.

At the end of the trail, on the center pillow of the bed, lay one single lavender rose with a note folded neatly above it.

A hand reached down and picked up the note with care before grabbing it by the edges and peeling it open. Lily Evans read the note slowly, comprehending every word inside before dropping down to the floor, shaking. Her heart pounded in her chest and she bit down on her lip as tears sprung to her eyes.

_Some say a lavender rose means Love at First Sight. I say they're right._

_Find all the meanings of the rose and find me. Just follow the trails. I'll give you a hint-the next one starts at the bottom of the seventh floor's staircase._

_-James Potter_

Picking herself up off the floor, Lily wiped away any stray tears and took hold of the rose on her pillow. She didn't waste a split second of her time before she was off down the staircase, rose and note in hand. Careful not to step on any of the petals, she made it down to the common room in record time. Lily practically bolted for the portrait hole.

Once out of the common room and in the hallway, she turned left and followed the corridor until she found the staircase that she was sure he meant. Sure enough, a new trail of rose petals started at the bottom of the staircase. She stopped in her tracks and stared at the beautiful pathway before her. Was she ready for this? Her eyes once again filled with tears as she thought to herself. She'd spent six years of her Hogwarts career yelling at this boy, putting him through hell just as he did to others, why give in to him now?

It was a silly question, she knew. Her feelings for James Potter have always been there, and this setup he'd put together was just what she needed to be able to finally admit those feelings.

Shaking her head and not even bothering to wipe away the tear sliding down her left cheek, she eagerly followed the second trail of rose petals. With each step she took Lily could feel her heart gaining speed. What was the next letter going to say? How many pathways were there? It took her almost a full ten seconds to realize the trail had ended, and in front of her lay another lavender rose and note.

Lily looked up trying to figure out where she was when it hit her. The Detention Hall. "Interesting choice," she muttered to herself with a smile as she picked up the rose and opened the second note.

_Enchantment. And I'm caught in yours._

_The next trail starts at the Prefects Bathroom._

_-James Potter_

Lily smiled to herself before taking off again. The roses were held in her left hand while the notes were in her right. She knew, of course, where the prefects bathroom was. And so she headed in the direction of the fourth floor. Taking the stairs two at a time, she soon found herself in front of the third trail of petals. Her mind was reeling at where this one might lead her. So she followed the petals at a quicker pace than she had before until she found the end.

It was the library.

A grin spread across her features when she saw this. He knew her too well. It seemed that he was picking these places on purpose. The Detention Hall must have been because of all the times she'd sent him there, and the library was of course one of her favorite places. Even the prefects bathroom had meaning. She was, after all, a prefect.

Picking up the third rose and note, Lily sighed to herself. Giddiness ran through her veins as she opened the note and read it out loud to herself.

_Wonder and Impossibility. You mean the world to me._

_You're halfway there, the next trail begins at the trophy room._

_-James Potter_

How was he managing all of this? Lily couldn't help but wonder to herself as she took hold of the third set and took off down the hallway. She just reached the stairs leading to the third floor where the trophy room was located when she finally gave up on answering the question. It was James Potter, he was always able to pull off things that would normally be considered very hard and practically impossible. She guessed that it must have just been the way he was. He always amazed her in such a way.

Finding the trophy room and fourth trail of petals, Lily let out a small chuckle. The trophy room, of course. It was probably James' favorite place outside of the Quidditch Pitch. A trophy stood in the center of one of the glass cabinets with his name on it, of course he loved the place.

Lily picked up the trail and followed it, wondering to herself what else was on this floor that the rose and note would be at. She soon found her answer after she turned a few corners and headed down a couple of hallways. This trail seemed to be a little longer than the rest, but Lily followed it with just as much enthusiasm as she had with the others.

After a few minutes of walking she found herself in front of her favorite classroom with another gleeful grin on her face. She bit down on her lower lip to prevent herself from squeeing as she picked up the fourth rose and note. This time, however, she stopped to sniff the rose as she hadn't done before and sighed when its sweet smell wafted through her nostrils. The scent was almost exotic, she'd smelt nothing like it before, but it was nice smell.

Opening the letter, she read it as she continued to smell the sweet rose.

_Regal Majesty. You are my queen._

_Two more trails to go. The next one starts at the Hospital Wing._

_-James Potter_

Lily almost snorted as she read where the next path started. She knew all too well how many times the boy was in that place, but even so it was an odd place to start a trail of rose petals at. Still she smiled all the same and headed on her way with perhaps even more eagerness in anticipation for the second to last note that would eventually lead her to the one boy that truly loved her.

Practically skipping, she headed down to the first floor and quickly found the Hospital Wing. The trail was there just as the note had said it would be. She followed it and soon found herself in front of the Muggle Studies classroom. She furrowed her eyebrows as she tried to think of what James' reasoning behind this room was. She'd figured out all the others up to this point, but she was stumped as she stood in front of the flower and note.

With a sudden thought Lily almost felt the need to slap her forehead. She was muggleborn. Muggle Studies. He took that class for her. Tears found their way to her eyes again and she quickly wiped them away before reaching for the second to last rose and note.

_Magical. Of course that's what you are._

_Don't worry the adventure's almost over, only one more trail to follow. The last trail starts at the Entrance Hall._

_-James Potter_

Heart pounding in her chest, Lily all but ran down the last flight of stairs towards the last trail of petals. When she reached the beginning of it however she stopped. Did she really want to go through with this? What if it was all a joke? What if he just wanted to see what she would do? No, she shook her head. This was real, he may be James Potter but he was no liar. He wouldn't put so much effort into this just to trick her, not after all the years he's been chasing her. He really meant this.

After taking a deep breath to calm her nerves she pushed open the Great Oak doors and followed the pathway of roses slowly. She took her time as they led her down towards the lake. When she reached there she almost cried when she realized why he'd picked that spot. It was the first time she'd ever talked to him, before all the fighting and pranking. Back when she thought he was a good guy, not that he wasn't now.

Once again she bit down on her lip as she picked up the last note and rose.

_Adoration. I adore you, you know I do. You are the reason I wake up in the morning and go to sleep at night._

_Now, look behind you._

_-James Potter_

_Timidly Lily turned around, each rose she'd picked up as well as each note in either hand. Tears formed in her eyes and she bit down on her lips once more in an attempt to keep them at bay. James Potter stood behind her in all his glory, an unknowing smile on his face as his hazel eyes pierced Lily's own emerald ones. "How?" was the only word she could form when she saw him._

"_I was just ahead of you the entire time. I set up everything just before you arrived there," he explained, his smile slowly growing larger. "Love at first sight. Enchantment. Wonder and impossibility. Regal majesty. Magical. Adoration. All the meanings of a single lavender rose." His hand that was previously behind his back appeared in front of her. One last rose held in it._

_Crying happily Lily took the rose and held it with the rest, taking a small whiff of them before throwing her arms around James. He eagerly hugged her back, not wanting to let her go. However, she pulled away after a few moments, looking up into his eyes and smiling through her tears. "Did you…really mean all of it?" she asked knowing the answer, but still wanting to hear it from him._

"_Of course. I love you Lily Evans."_

"_I love you too James Potter."_


End file.
